Post 178 Mostly stitching again

A cold day in Adelaide, with a little rain. Canberra, however, had snow flurries! Both Victoria and NSW Highlands had snow today - but, of course, ski fields are closed.

It was my cleaning day. I had a postal delivery around lunchtime (the times are really out of joint when you get postal delivery on Saturday!). It was one of the books I ordered from Can Do Books. I've also ordered a book called Milarrochy Heids - hat patterns from Milarrochy.

I am considering making the hat on this cover from the left-over wool from the Shetland scarf.







I was very pleased to stay home today and work on the Icelandic Endless Knot.

I persevered for a day with the square roll frame but didn't like it. I'd prefer to scoop my long-armed cross stitches but that progressively loosens the fabric in the square frame. But stabbing really requires two free hands.

The piece fits nicely in a 10" hoop. In a seated stand I have two hands free to manage stabbing stitches.

It requires concentration. I unpicked a couple of sections because I had been one thread out in my count in a base row.

I went to Katherine's place for dinner and took my knitting. There's no way I can be sure of an accurate count on this motif while socialising. The knitting is progressing slowly - still too slowly for me to include photos!


By the end of the evening this is where I am up to. It's not fast work but is going to look great!

Post 40: Deliveries

The photo of the day is this one sent to me this evening by my friend Jennifer in isolation in a Perth hotel. I really love it. Jennifer is waiting on the results of a second test for Covid19. She's managing to keep calm and keep embroidering.


My outing today was triggered by the need to get the battery in my car key replaced. Although I have the spare key that usually stays with my daughter and son-in-law, I wanted to restore my key as soon as possible. I rang my Toyota servicer. They could do it, so I drove there as soon as my deliveries had arrived. It was strange to see no customers waiting for their cars to be cleaned or serviced.

The spare parts counter was carefully marked out. The replacement only took a few minutes and cost $12.

On my way home I stopped off at the Veale Gardens in the South Terrace parklands. I haven't  been here for many, many years.

The roses are looking really good at the moment.

I liked this very dark pink the best.














The roses, however, are not, in my view, the best part of the parkland's gardens. There are well laid out walking paths, with water features and landscaped groves of trees















There are ducks and a few ibis.



We are fortunate to have these parklands surrounding the CBD. The sun was out, and there were three or four families playing games with children, a couple of cyclists and three walkers other than myself. Plenty of space to keeping our distance.

I often wake quite early. I check emails and news and sometimes read a book or do a daily sudoko puzzle online before I get up. I preference text-based over video-based material. However, Phillipa Turnbull has been making a daily Crewel Work video, each one demonstrating a very specific skill. Phillipa is really good at this. Her demonstrations and explanations are exceptionally clear and helpful. I watched her first two videos as they were posted. This morning I caught up on most of the remainder.  I'm convinced these have had an impact on the leaves I've been embroidering on the Mellerstain Firescreen. I really recommend them if you are a surface embroiderer. The first video can be found here or you can Google 'Phillipa's Crewel Corner'.

After breakfast I got stuck into sending out an email to the World Embroidery Study Group, attaching Lori's pdf version of the PowerPoint she made of what would have been her talk to the Group this coming Wednesday. It's really good.  I tried to upload it to my website, so I could put a link here for others to view, but there was a problem. I've asked my web developer to fix it when he gets time. These days he makes videos for companies, and is probably rushed off his feet at the moment. I didn't ask for priority treatment, so it might be a while before I can share it this way.

My Marino's Meat delivery came around 11.30, and the Post Office delivered the Can Do Books order less than 10 minutes later. The meat was vacuum packed. The book is the one about embroidery on knitting. I think it's really good - more about it tomorrow.










I am  comfortable, well-serviced and connected. Today I had a charming eCard from friends in Nowra and a long, relaxed phone call from a neighbour, as well as messages from a range of friends and family.  These are what sustain me.









Along, of course, with the embroidery. I managed three more rows on the Fair Isle scarf on the sunny Western balcony this afternoon. The Mellerstain parrots progress - or at least the leaves and berries progress. I'm debating whether to do the remainder of the leaves and berries or launch into the parrots themselves.


Sleep on it.

Self-isolation Day 12: knitting in the sun

Another lovely day in Adelaide, around 23C. By late morning, after I'd caught up with news, finished a book and responded to emails. I noticed the great cloud formation in the East, grabbed my knitting and took myself out to my back balcony.

It was then I noticed some lovely little blooms - on my wall garden



and in a balcony rail box. These are quite small - maybe 5cm across. Such fabulous shapes and colours.

Parent

I also noticed a succulent I had planted from a cutting emerging as a promising new plant.
This is the parent.

pups

One of its pups, that I planted out a while back, is shedding its big leaves to reveal two new shoots, one at the front and one at the back. Under the old leaves is a very healthy looking stem base. A promising start.

In response to yesterday's post, a friend asked for a photo of the underside of the Fair Isle scarf.  I am knitting this in the round, so it is a double thickness effectively forming a tube.  There are no more than two colours per row. There are a few rows with 5, 6 or 7 consecutive stitches in the same colour, but mostly it's less. I try not to carry wool over more that 4 stitches without anchoring.




One of the tricks with Fair Isle is keeping your working yarn free of tangles. I have been keeping my working yarn outside  the tube and the balls I will use again within about 10 rows inside the tube itself, carrying the yarn up through the rows on the inside.  I only cut yarn on balls I will not use again for a greater number of rows.
The trouble is that the balls fall out the bottom of the tube.

For the moment I have solved this by joining the bottom of the tube now, rather than when I finish.  I also dug out bag to hold the two working balls and I also  dug out the magnetic board I bought to use for counted embroidery patterns. Seems to have improved my progress.
















Incidentally,  I have a number of email responses to my reminder that readers can unsubscribe, all  telling me they wish to continue.  I am encouraged and will keep going as long as there are subscribers. Thank you so much to all who have given me feedback and for your interest. It is lovely to hear from you.

The book I finished reading this morning was Corpse at the Carnival by George Bellairs, a Golden Age crime fiction writer, now being republished by Agora Books. It is set on the Isle of Man in carnival season when the island is packed with trippers on holiday, arriving by boat, staying in hotels and boarding houses, promenading, partying, dining, boating - or hiking around the island. I enjoyed the read very much, but found myself, in self-isolation from the Corona virus in 2020, thinking quite differently about our centuries old habit of congregating in popular locations for holidays and relaxation. We have taken so much for granted.

I also received the latest email catalogue from Can do Books.  I do most of my reading electronically, but not craft books - which I am trying hard not to buy! I made an exception, however, when I saw this one. It occurred to me (Margaret Adams take note!) that this might form the basis of a Guild class, and bridge the ideological gap between knitting and embroidery, so thought I'd investigate. Besides, I have a couple of jumpers with holes that might be covered with embroidery. By the time it arrives I'll be able to go to my letterbox!

It is also a good time to support a business like Can do Books, which has closed its physical shop. They have some good books on sale, including some of the Inky colouring books. 

After 2.30 I followed the sun to my front balcony. It was lovely knitting in the sun, behind my plants. There were a few people using the Square to walk dogs, or children and the young man with the weights did his exercises again late in the day.

Again, there were interesting shapes and details. These frangipani leaves might turn into an embroidery design one day. In the light you can see lovely markings.









and I'm sure I will find a use for this spider's web.

I progressed the scarf to the next, blue, band.

before heading inside to heat the last of Susan's Osso Bucco, this time with pasta.

I focused on knitting today. I have seven + repeats of the 47 line pattern to go. Tomorrow I'll do some embroidery!

Tomorrow I have another Woolworths delivery. I haven't added anything to it, since to do so I need to cancel and then reorder. I think I can do this while keeping my delivery time, but decided not to try! I'm sure I will adjust to this ordering routine with time and learn all the tricks. In the meantime, I'll be happy if I get some fresh milk tomorrow!